Henby johnson



(No Model.) I

H.-.JOHNSON.

APPARATUS POR OPERATING RAILWAY SAIGNA'LS. N0.259,8651 l Patented June20, 1882.

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N. FLTERs. Plmminnogmplwn Washingwn. D, C.

l .UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

" HENEY JOHNSON, OE EocLEs, COUNTY OE LANCASTER, ENGLAND.

APPARATUS FOR OPERATING RAILWAY-SIGNALS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 259,865, dated June 20, 1882..

Application tiled January 7, 1882. (No model.) Patented in England December 27., 1879,No. 5,297; in France July 3, 1880,

\ No. 137,595; in Belgium July 19, 1880, No. 52,064, and in Germany July 20, 1880, No. 14,147.

To all whom tt may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY JOHNSON, of Eccles, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Apparatus for Operating Railway- Signals, (for which I have obtained Letters Patent of Great Britain No; 5,297, dated December 27,-1879, a Brevet dInvention of the Republic of France, No. 137,595, dated July 3, 1880, a Brevet dImportation of the Kingdom of Belgium, No. 52,064, dated `J uly.19, 1880, and a patent of the German Empire, l\Io.`14,147,v dated July 20, 1880,) of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings. My invention relates to that part of signaling apparatus which connects the actuatinglever to the arm or'other such part of the railway semaphore-signal; and it consists in a method of compensating for alterations due to temperature in the length of the connecting wire, rod, chain, or other such apparatus. For this purpose I introduce within the length of such wire, rod, or chain, and between two sections thereof, a4 tight vessel containing liquid provided with a cylinder and piston, which p liquid, on its expansion or contraction according to changes of atmospheric temperature, regulates vthe tension ofthe said Wire, rod, orl chain.

I will now proceed to describe a method by which my invention may be practically carried into effect.

In the accompanying drawings, Figures 1, 2, and 3 show my apparatus for compensating the variations in the length of the wires,'rods, or chains which connect the signal and the actuating-lever, similar letters of reference being placed upon corresponding parts in each of the figures. Fig. 1 is a plan. Fig. 2is a central longitudinal vertical section, and Fig. 3 is .Y a cross-section taken on the line C D of Fig. 1.

At 1 is a cylinder, screwed at one end into a cross-cap, 2. Into this cross-cap 2 are screwed the ends ofpipes or tubes 3 4. The other ends, 3* 4*, of the pipes 3 4 are formed solid, so as to be closed, a projecting part thereof being provided with screwed nuts 5 5* for attaching a cross-plate, 18, to the ends of the tubes 3 4, the

pipes or tubes3 4 and crOss-eaps2 18 forming.

a frame to carry the before-named cylinder 1, and for other purposes to be hereinafter described.

The cylinder 1 is provided with a cap, 6, screwed thereon, which is supported by a clip havingprojecting 'parts 7 7*, through which lthe tubes 3 4 pass, such a clip serving to support one end of the cylinder 1. The cylinder l is provided with a piston or ram, 8, passing through a packing, 9, within the cap 6, such packing being compressed by ascrewed gland, 10, screwing into the cross-cap 6.

I may here remark that I do not confine myself to the use of the above-described method of forming a joint between the piston or ram 8 and the cylinder 1, as other methods of packing may be substituted.

Upon the end of the piston or ram 8, outside the cylinder 1, is a cross-head, 11, fixed upon the ram 8 by a screwed nut, 8*, formed with projecting ears or parts 12 12* 12** 12***, embracing the pipes or, tubes 3 4, but free to slide thereon, thereby acting as guides to support the outer end of the piston or ram 8. This cross-head is also provided with projecting parts 13 l3*, through which the ends of rods 14 14* pass. These rods are jointed together so as to form a loop at l5, their other ends being provided with screwed nuts 16 16*. The rods 1414* pass through ears 17 17* formed upon the cross-cap 2, such ears acting as guides or supports to the rods 14 14*.

To the cross-plate 18 a loop or eye, 19, is atporting rollers or pulleys 22 22* 23 23*, upon lwhich the pipes or tubes 3 4 rest, so as to be capable of being moved thereon, as will hereinafter be described. The'frames 21 21* are.

formed with extended parts 24 24* 25 25", through which pass bolts 26 27, which extend across and above the tubes 3 4, thereby preventing the apparatus from being lifted from the rollers 22 22* 23 23* 5 but whenever it becomes desirable to remove the apparatus for repair or other purpose the bolts 2627 may be withdrawn and the apparatus may be removed without disturbing the frame 2121*.

The wire or chain 28. (shown broken for convenience of illustration) is secured at one end to the loop or eye 19, the other end thereof being connected to the usual hand-lever used for actuating the signal. The wire or chain 28* is secured at one end to the loop 15, formed upon the rods 14 14it, and at its other end is secured to the ordinary lever at the signalpost, which acts upon the atmospheric signal.

The length of the wires, rods, or chains connectingthe hand-lever with the signal, as is well known, expands or contracts with variations of temperatures, and my invention compensates for such variations in the length of the aforesaid connecting wires, rods, or chains in the following manner: The tubes or pipes 3 4, the interior of the cross-cap 2, and the cylinder 1 are illed with liquid, and as such liquid expands by increased temperature it will force the piston or ram 8 in the direction of the arrow E, (shown in Fig. 2,) thereby drawing the two portions 28 28* of the wire, rod, or chain connecting thehand-lever and the signalnearer to eachother, thereby compensating for the increased length of such connecting wire, rod, or chain aforesaid, arising from increased temperature. When the wires, rods, or chains aforesaid become contracted by decreasing temperature the piston will thereby be forced into the cylinder in a direction opposite to that shown by the arrow E, the contraction of the before-named liquid caused by the decreased temperature allowing such movement of the piston or ram 8 to take place. The quantity of liquid contained within the pipes 3 4, crosscap 2, and cylinder l must be proportioned to the length of wire to be compensated; or the diameter of the piston or ram 8 may be iucreased or decreased for the like purpose. When the hand-lever is moved to actuate the signal the piston 8, pipes or tubes 3 4, cylinder Land other parts ofthe compensating apparatus move bodily upon the rollers 22 22* 23 23i, such rollers also allowing for the alteration in the relative positions of the parts arising from variations of temperature.

At 40 is a plug screwed into and closing an aperture formed on the cap 2, for the purpose of putting the liquid into the interior of the tubes 3 4 and cylinder 1.

The pipes 3 and 4 form a reservoir for containing a large supply of liquid, so as to give a greater length of movement of the ram or piston than would be secured with the cylinder alone; but, instead of the pipes 3 and 4, I may provide a separate reservoir or vessel, which may be stationary, and connect such vessel to the cylinder containing the piston or ram by means of a flexible tube, such iiexible tube allowing for the movement of the cylinder during the working of the signal.

kof reference being placed upon the parts correspondingto those of thepreviously-described figures, 1, 2, and 3. I

At 30 is the hand-lever as ordinarily used for actuating semaphore-signals.

At 32 is an ordinary semaphore-signal post, f

the arm 31 of which is pulled to danger by means of the usual weights, 33.

At 28 28* is the wire, rod, or chain used toy connect the hand-lever 30 and semaphore-arm 3l,fbut broken off for convenience ot' illustration. This wire, as previously stated, is subject to variations of length caused by variations of atmospheric temperature, such variations of length causing a partial movement of the semaphore-arm. To compensate for such contractions or expansions I insert the apparatus shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3 between the hand-lever 30 and signal 31 in the following manner: The wire 28, attached to the tubes 3 4 and cylinder 1, is connected to the hand-lever 30. The piston or ram 8 is connected through the cross-head l1, side rods, 14 14%, to the rod or chain 28st, connected to the lever 33i of the ordinarysemaphore-signal arrangement. When the hand-lever 30 is pulled over in the direction of the arrow F such movement tends to force the ram or piston within the cylinder l; but the liquid contained therein preventing the movement of the ram 8, the ram 8 and cylinder 1 aredrawn bodily forward, and

through the cross-head 11, side rods,--14-14*, and rod, wire, or chain 28* actuates the signal 31 in the usual manner. Upon an increase of atmospheric temperature taking place the wire, rod, or chain 28 28* becomes expanded; but such increase of temperature also expanding theliquid contained within thepipesortubes34 and cylinder 1, the ram 8 is forced outward in the direction of the arrow H shown in Fig. 2, thereby taking up the slack wire or chain, which would otherwise have existed. If, on the contrary, the atmospheric pressure decreases and the wire 28 284 contracts, theliquid contained within the tubes 3 4and cylinder 1, also contracting, allows the piston or ram to be moved in opposite direction to that of the arrow H by the weight 33, thereby keeping the wire or chain 28 28* at a uniform tension.

In cases where much dust or grit may accumulate upon the piston or ram 8, I propose to make use of the following arrangement for removing such dust and dirt aforesaid from that portion of the ram which is outside the packing 9, and preventing such packing being injured thereby: Within the gland 10, Iform a screw, into which I screw a part, 34, provided with a screwed gland, 35, for retaining in position a packing, 36. As the ram 8 passes into the cylinder 1 the packing 36 will strip oil any dust or dirt that may be upon the ram 8, thereby cleansing the ram before it passes IIO IIS

into the packing 9. Within the part 34 and around the piston or vrain 8, I form an annular cavity, 37, within which cavity I place material for lubricating the piston or ram 8, such 5 lubricant being inserted within the cavity 37 through an opening vformed through the part 34, such opening being closed by means of a screwed plug, 38, after inserting the lubricating material. lo I have only shown the compensating apparatus as applied to one description of signal; but it will be readily understood thatit is also applicable to other signals actuated by means of a rod, wire, or chain in a manner similar to 15 that shown at Fig. 4.

2o its actuatinglever or device, of a wire, chain, or

otherconnection extending between them, and composed of sections, a cylinder containing liquid, and to which one section of said oonnection is attached, and a piston or ram to which the other section of said connection is 25 attached, and which is adapted to move relatively to the cylinder as the liquid expands or contracts, substantially as and for the purpose speciiied.

2. The combination, with a railway-.signal 3o and its actuating lever or device, ot' asectional connection extending between them, a liquidreservoir, and a cylinder communicating therewith, and to which one section of said connection is attached, and a piston or ram to which 3 5 the other section of said connection is attached, and which is adapted to move relatively to the cylinder as the liquid in said reservoir and cylindex` expands or contracts, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

HENRY JOHNSON.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR G. HALL,

Y U. S. Consulate, Manchester, Eng. W. T. GHEETHAM, Patent A gent, 1S St. Amts St., Manchester. 

